Ireland–South Africa relations

Ireland–South Africa relations

Ireland	South Africa

There is a historical and current bilateral relationship between Ireland and South Africa. Both countries have established embassies in the territory of the other, in Dublin and Pretoria. Ireland's South African embassy also oversees matters in both the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zimbabwe.

President of South Africa Jacob Zuma said there exists a "special relationship" between the two countries. In 2006 South Africa was Ireland's "33rd most important trading partner" and in 2008 trade between the two countries was worth more than €500 million per annum according to RTÉ.

Irish missionaries have been working in South Africa since before 1860.

The opening of bilateral relations was strongly considered by both governments in the 1930s and 1940s, following a successful state visit by South African prime minister General J. B. M. Hertzog to Dublin in 1930. At that time, connections between the two "restless dominions" were particularly cordial, based also on an earlier Irish nationalist identification with the Boer cause during the South African War of 1899–1902, but cost concerns prevented an exchange of high commissioners. Nevertheless, there were regular private visits by South Africa's London-based high commissioners, most notably Charles te Water in the 1930s, and Dr A. L. Geyer, who was a guest of Taoiseach Éamon de Valera in 1952. While purely financial considerations had prevented the mutual exchange of ambassadors, by the 1960s a principled stand against apartheid came to prevent such an upgrading of relations. As a result, Ireland was the only EU country that did not have full diplomatic relations with South Africa until 1993. An exchange of ambassadors was agreed with the De Klerk administration in anticipation of the ending of apartheid, despite vociferous protests from the Irish Anti-Apartheid Movement, led by Kader and Louise Asmal, which regarded such relations as premature. The Irish embassy opened in Pretoria in 1994.

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